by Helen Juliet
Here was the question he posed himself. Would he trade his way out of the humiliation from Daryl if it meant he never got to have that kiss with Kai?
It wasn’t a real kiss of course, it was probably as fake as they came. But it had still been good. It had still given Riley goose bumps and made his heart race and fulfilled a fantasy he’d nurtured for almost a decade.
He now knew that Kai’s lips were as soft as they looked and he didn’t apply too much pressure. The last guy Riley had pulled from a bar had used his tongue as if it was a weapon, forcing his way into Riley’s mouth like a spear. But Kai had encouraged Riley, coaxed him so they could meet in the middle. Firm, but not so much that Riley hadn’t still felt in control.
His hands lathered suds over his body, chasing away the grime from the journey up in the car and the sweat from his morning’s run. It would be so easy to just reach down and wake his cock up, the memory of the kiss fresh in his mind’s eye. He’d got himself half aroused enough times yesterday, it wouldn’t take long to get off now, he was sure.
Except, the showers were dingy and cold, and wanking off so soon after the kiss felt like it might sully the moment. When he was back in London and he knew he wouldn’t see Kai for another several months, he could pleasure himself to his heart’s content. Really savour it. But for now, he felt like preserving the memory as it was. Something special.
In time, hopefully, the kiss and their triumph at the name game would be what he’d remember from last night.
Not anything to do with Daryl Grinter and his stupid, sneering face.
19
Riley
Satisfied he was as clean as he was going to get, Riley turned off the water and groped for his towel, hastily drying himself off so he could dress. The coolness of the cubicles was pleasant – he knew he’d be overheated for the rest of the day. But he was acutely aware that someone could walk in and he didn’t want to be half naked if he had to face anyone he’d rather not.
Or that he rather would, as it turned out.
He’d only just managed to get his boxers on in time when the outer door swung inwards and let in a burst of light. For a moment he couldn’t see and he threw his hand up to shield his eyes. “Hello?” he squeaked.
“Oh, hey,” a deep voice replied.
Riley froze as the door swung back and he was left looking at a sweat-soaked Kai. His vest and very short shorts clung to his damp, muscular body. The vision it offered up made Riley gulp.
The tattoos on his arms appeared to gleam under the sheen of sweat from whatever workout he’d just completed. Amongst the varied designs, Riley could make out a bear and a skull surrounded by roses. The colours were muted. His artist had used subtle shades to create tone. The overall effect was powerful but not overwhelming.
Plus, it didn’t hurt that the arms carrying the decoration were huge and chiselled to perfection. Riley had almost died of happiness the couple of times Kai had casually draped one of them across his shoulders the night before.
He remembered where he was. He needed to do or say something before the moment stretched out any further and became weird.
His natural instinct was to snatch his towel up and cover his body. That would definitely make things awkward though. So Riley used all his self-control to merely pick it up as casually as he could and started drying off his hair. Just like you’re at the gym, he told himself.
“Morning,” he said brightly. “You go for a run too?”
Kai blinked a couple of times. It was obvious he was looking at Riley’s almost totally naked body and Riley tried his best not to shy away in shame. No, he wasn’t nearly as ripped as Kai was, but he knew he didn’t look too bad. This was probably awkward for Kai too, especially after last night. But if they could just move past it, it would be fine.
As if coming out of a daze, Kai shook his head and walked forward. His towel was slung over his shoulder and he had a simple all-in-one shower-gel-and-shampoo bottle clutched in his hand. “Oh yeah mate,” he said cheerfully, answering Riley’s question. “It’s beautiful around here. It would be rude not to go exploring.”
Riley chuckled and thankfully found himself dry enough to pull on his shorts. He felt slightly less vulnerable with that small amount of clothing protecting him.
“I had to sweat out the hangover. How are you feeling?”
He didn’t just mean after the alcohol. But he wondered if Kai would pretend nothing out of the ordinary had happened. He wouldn’t blame him if he did; in fact, it would probably be best for both of them if that’s how they moved forward.
“I’m good,” he said, stopping at the sink next to where Riley’s products were littered. “Can I borrow some of that?”
Riley nodded and offered up his toothpaste. Kai pulled a toothbrush from his back pocket and got to scrubbing.
As Kai was unable to talk for the moment, Riley applied his deodorant in increasingly awkward silence. He should think of something to say, something funny! Something that wasn’t ‘So, do you regret that kiss last night? Because I don’t.’
Instead, he chewed at his lips and began picking up his various tubes and tubs to collect them back into his wash kit.
“Whereabouts did you-”
“How did you-”
They both looked at each other, then laughed. Kai spat out his toothpaste and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “I was just wondering how you slept.”
“Oh, fine thanks, fine.” Riley paused as Kai began peeling off his vest. “Uh, you?”
Kai rubbed his face. He seemed a bit sheepish for some reason. Riley hardly noticed though as he was focusing extremely hard on not staring at his pectorals.
“Yeah, fine,” he grunted. But he offered up a smile that cancelled out whatever had bothered him.
It was ironic that Kai had been so anxious about being struck dumb in the game last night, because honestly, that was Riley’s perpetual dilemma, especially around people he fancied. He flailed around mentally, trying to seize upon something to say that wouldn’t make him sound like a complete loser.
Luckily, the door burst inwards at that moment to save him, delivering Sheena Patel as the perfect distraction.
She was in t-shirt-and-shorts pyjamas with some very angry cupcakes on the design yelling ‘You made me evil!’ After taking a few steps past the first cubicles, she stopped and raised an eyebrow. “This doesn’t look like first dibs in the showers to me,” she said, the corner of her mouth twitching in amusement.
“Oh sorry,” cried Riley guiltily. He had completely forgotten that was one of the prizes from the game last night.
“I haven’t had one yet,” Kai said, just as shamefaced. “Go for it.”
Sheena waved them off and smirked. “I’m just playing. Although, if I’m interrupting, I can come back later?”
Riley frowned in confusion, then he looked down and realised they were both standing there topless. “Oh,” he said scrambling for his t-shirt. “No, I-”
“We were just talking,” said Kai with a laugh.
“I was just leaving.” Riley snatched up his bag, towel and damp running gear, then darted around them both. “Catch you later!”
The embarrassment didn’t really hit until he was back outside, marching over to his tent in the bright sunshine. He moaned and rubbed at his beard, getting rid of the last few drops of water clinging to it.
What would other people think if they’d seen that? Sheena seemed pretty cool, but this wasn’t fair on Kai. People were going to start gossiping if they kept giving them reason to suspect…what? That something was going on? The two of them needed to stop putting themselves in compromising positions open to interpretation.
It was time to go back to Plan A, he decided, throwing his wash kit by his bed. He and Kai needed to have as much distance between them as possible, and he was the one who had to make sure that happened. Things were complicated enough without adding any further incidences.
Bia looked at him inquisitively. He took a
moment to catch his breath and run his fingers through his thick, damp hair.
Nothing had been done that couldn’t be undone. He just needed to make sure they spent the day apart as much as possible. By tomorrow everyone would have forgotten about that stupid dare.
He smacked his thigh and Bia sprung to her feet. She could still be agile when she wanted to be. “I think it’s breakfast time,” he said to her. “Don’t you?” She gave her answer in the form of a quick spin in a circle and a couple of barks, tail wagging.
Riley had always been scared of the camping stove. Lighting gas on fire just didn’t seem to be a sensible way to go about anything. But they couldn’t barbeque everything for the rest of the week.
So as his family slowly came to life around him, he sat down and worked out how to operate the dual-ring stove with the grill underneath. He was going to make bacon, eggs and toast if it was the last thing he did.
His clattering about and the first few smells of food lured people out into the open quicker. Soon he was surrounded by his yawning family, swapping hugs as they got comfy around the stove. Brendon had one as well, so in no time they had water on the boil for tea and a pot of beans which Jake stirred. He had his tongue between his teeth in concentration.
Kai came back from his shower. Riley smiled at him, but then he made a point of chatting with Jake as they fussed over the food. To his relief, Kai naturally drifted over to his dad and they began discussing something or other. He caught the word ‘parachute’ more than once, so he guessed it was about Kai’s upcoming charity sky-dive. Which Riley had absolutely not been following with sick fascination on social media.
After his run and the hangover from the night before, Riley was more than ready for the large breakfast they served up with fresh juice and an assortment of fruit. Everyone complimented him on his eggs and he couldn’t help but beam. It was a Gordon Ramsay recipe, but he kept that little secret to himself.
While they ate, the other families could be seen pottering about and making their way to and from the bathroom facilities. Pavan stopped by to say hello with Sheena in tow. Riley tensed, but nothing about her suggested she’d heard about the kiss from last night’s game or anything else. She certainly didn’t pay him or Kai any particular attention.
It wasn’t that he expected her to be homophobic, in fact, he was pretty certain she wasn’t. It was just he hated the thought of people looking at Kai like they looked at him. Like they knew he was different, and had to take a moment to assess just how different.
As the morning went on Riley found himself relaxing. Once breakfast was tidied away, Kai went off with Jake to take some photos of a cool rock formation he’d found. His dad and Slady poured over an orienteering map of the area, and Riley and his mum stretched out in the sun. His mum was keen to read a few more pages of a battered old crime novel. But Riley was content to just close his eyes and be in the moment. Bia was by his side, full of bacon scraps everyone had thought they had been stealthy giving her. She gave a snuffle to show how happy she was with that.
Without meaning to, Riley dozed off. But he reckoned he’d only been out of it for around twenty minutes before his dad shook him awake. “Come on, mate,” he said, grinning. “Time for the first activity.”
He looked so excited Riley automatically plastered a smile onto his face. Inside though, he wanted to groan. It had just been starting to feel like a proper holiday, then they had to bring organised fun into it. But that’s what Scouts did, so there was no sense in grumbling.
It wasn’t just their family who had been rounded up. The Patels, Grinters and Sidcups were also gathering around where Riley’s dad was standing on a rock that almost looked stable. There would be more families arriving during the day. However, as Riley understood it, they could join in with whatever was going to be going on once they’d arrived. Either that or chill out and wait until tomorrow to get involved.
He was aware of Kai coming back with Jake and he was relieved when they stood on the other side of the gaggle to him. Maybe he’d look back on this week and regret putting space between the two of them. Right then all he could think was that no more drama could happen if they stayed apart.
“Right, okay,” said his dad, clapping his hands together. He bounced precariously on the rock and Riley really hoped he wouldn’t slip. A trip to the hospital was not what he had in mind for the day. “We have our first challenge – I hope you’re ready.”
A few people cheered, but Riley was too nervous to join in.
“Bev, have you got the sheets?”
Riley looked over to see his mum had several sheets of paper in her hands that she began to distribute to the group. “Oh!” said Charlotte as soon as she laid eyes on what was written there. Riley took that was a bad sign.
But actually, it wasn’t as dreadful as he’d imagined.
“Scavenger hunt!” his dad cried, throwing his hands in the air.
It was indeed. The paper simply contained a list of things that each pair had to find. It wasn’t like Riley knew what half of them were, but whoever he was put with would almost certainly have a good idea. That meant all he had to do was walk around for a while and maybe take some photos on his phone once they’d found the items.
“Have you decided on pairs?” Cameron asked. Pamela was already hungrily looking over the list, her eyes darting back and forth.
“Yes,” said Riley’s dad. “Although before I announce them, I should say that the winners will receive a luxury gift basket courtesy of Cameron and his family.”
There was a round of applause that Riley joined in with to be polite. “Oh, no,” said Pamela, coyly, “It’s nothing, really.”
That meant it cost about £50.
“The winners are those with the best finds by this time tomorrow,” his mum announced, tapping her watch. It was eleven o’clock. That meant the other families arriving today had a chance to play too, Riley supposed.
“Okay, so, without further ado,” Riley’s dad said. “Teams! I just went for the simplest pairs.”
He adjusted his glasses and nodded at the gathering. Riley realised Bia had plonked herself at his feet and was looking up at everyone in anticipation. It might be nice to take her with him, he thought, if whoever he was paired with didn’t mind. She hopefully wouldn’t slow them down that much.
“The Sidcups and the Patels, you each make a pair.”
Mr Sidcup wrapped his arm around Mrs Sidcup and gave her a thumbs-up. Sheena nodded with determination at her mum.
“Elder and younger Grinters, you also make two pairs.”
“Bring it,” growled Daryl but his mother just tittered in response.
“And then the Andersons,” said Riley’s dad, turning towards his family. “Bev and I will work with Jake.”
“Yes,” Riley’s little brother cried with an air grab.
Riley’s eyebrows rose in surprise. He naturally assumed he’d be with Jake. A sinking sensation crept into his gut. Oh no…
“Then Brendon with Slady. Which leaves-”
Riley gasped. Oh NO.
“Riley, you and Kai make the last pairing.”
Terrific.
20
Kai
Kai had been engrossed at looking at the list for the scavenger hunt when he heard his name called. “Huh?” he said.
Jake poked his ribs, making him laugh. People were starting to chatter and peel off from the group. Phil was still perched on his rock and Bev seemed to be having a hard time encouraging him down at the present moment.
“Are we together?” he asked Jake. They’d had a fun time clambering over the little crop of boulders Jake had found that morning, taking silly photos with Snapchat filters. It would be cool to team up.
Jake shook his head though. “You’re with Riley, didn’t you hear?”
“Oh,” said Kai. No, he had not heard that.
He snapped his head around to where Riley was stood, Bia by his feet. He was already staring at Kai, his expression terse, but w
hen they met each other’s gaze he managed a small smile and a wave.
“Hey partner,” Kai cried with enthusiasm, waving back.
This was going to be brilliant. He had sort of hoped he and Riley would get to work together on something this week, but to get paired up just the two of them on the first day was a stroke of luck.
Although, he was pretty sure Phil said something about choosing the pairs. Kai had mentioned to him that he was keen to spend more time with Riley. Maybe that had done the trick?
“I guess I’ll catch you later, buddy,” he said to Jake. “You with your mum and dad?”
The youngest Anderson nodded and stuck his hand towards Kai. “May the best man win,” he proclaimed.
Kai shook on that, then jogged over to Riley. It did make sense to put them together he supposed, as almost everyone else was already some sort of couple or pair.
“This is cool, isn’t it?”
Riley darted his eyes towards him, then quickly looked down at the sheet of paper. “Uh, yeah.”
Kai frowned in confusion. He thought they were getting along well; was Riley upset they were going to be spending the day together?
Or was he still cut up over that kiss?
Kai felt wretched all over again about the wank he’d had before falling asleep. In the cold, sober light of day, it seemed so much worse. Of course, Riley had no way to know what he’d got up to, but Kai still felt weird about it.
And then they’d run into each other in the shower block, and Riley had been essentially naked. His loose boxers had hidden any kind of bulge, but Kai had seen plenty of the rest of his lithe, smooth body. Kai was reasonably furry across his chest, but Riley’s hair was golden and sparse.
Kai had shocked himself at how his attention had been immediately drawn to the happy trail leading from Riley’s belly button down beneath the elastic of his underwear. Kai knew he’d stared too long, and he had to wonder; had he been checking Riley out?
“I don’t know what hardly any of this stuff is,” Riley finally blurted out, snapping him back to the present. He turned his hazel eyes up to Kai and held the sheet of paper out helplessly. “Sorry, I’m going to be shit.”